A Snapshot and The Scoop: Late Sunsets

Something I've never really thought about was the sun and its movement through the sky relative to a person's location. On our trip up north this past June I got a reminder that not everybody has the same sun as I do back home in Texas. We were so far north in the summer that sunsets there were late, much later than I was used to. It was 9:30pm and the sun was still in the sky, and sunsets lingered past 10:30pm. I'm a sunrise-sunset girl, but 10:30pm is past my bedtime! I stayed up a few times but mostly was asleep at my normal time - before the sun slipped below the horizon.

Leave me a comment below and tell me if you've noticed the sun sets at different times depending on how far north or south you are. Was it just me who was surprised?

A Snapshot and The Scoop: The Geographical Center of North America

On our cross-country drive this past June Jared and I found oureslves at the geographical center of North America. How exactly they (whoever "they" is) calculated the centerpoint of Mexico, the U.S., and Canada, I have no idea, but when I saw the road sign for it I knew we had to stop. Its little attractions like this that make me love driving so much. Yes, I have a destination, but getting there is at least half of the fun. Also: bragging rights to being at the center of a continent!

Leave me a comment below and tell me if you've ever been here, or someplace similar. What roadside attractions do you like best?

A Snapshot and The Scoop: White Petrified Wood

I've seen my fair share of petrified wood, and in every case the rock is incredibly colorful. On our trip to North Dakota this June, Jared, his grandma, one of his aunts, and I checked out Fort Stevenson State Park where we came across bone-white petrified wood. I've never seen it so white before! I went inside to ask the girl behind the museum counter about it, why it is white, but she had no idea. Unless maybe it was fake, but I doubt it. Now I need to find out what makes colorful petrified wood and what makes white petrified wood!

Leave me a comment below if you know what the difference it! I would love to learn!

A Snapshot and The Scoop: Fort Stevenson State Park

Our trip up north this past June took Jared and I to visit family in North Dakota, where we also slipped in a visit to the local state park, Fort Stevenson. Located on the shore of Lake Sakakawea, Fort Stevenson is a gateway onto the lake but also holds its own as a historical park. The fort was used in the early days of trapping and exploring the wild west, and was a stop along the way to gold mines in Montana and Idaho, but today only a replica of the main building remains. It was still neat to learn about the history of the area and how things used to be for those who settled nearby. Its always fun to go to parks like this, to see how things had been.

Leave me a comment below and tell me if you think historical parks like this are neat, or are they boring?